The #1 Habit of Successful Business Executives

Share This Article

What would you say is the #1 habit of successful business executives? Answer: they recognize there’s always something more to learn.

In March, we surveyed our community of over 700,000 executives to understand the role and purpose of learning and development in everyday executive life. We were seeking to understand executives and their employers’ views on ongoing education, who is responsible for their continued development, how they seek out education and what barriers they face.

The results were inspiring. Ninety-seven percent of respondents said executive learning and development is important in business and careers, and 81 percent believe executive learning and development is valued at their organization. This appreciation for the value of learning at the executive level underscores one of the cornerstone principles at ExecuNet: that executive learning is a vital and continuous process necessary for career and business success.

Executives who make learning a priority identified numerous benefits of investing in continual learning. They include:

Formulating effective strategies

Improving decision-making and problem-solving skills

Improving leadership skills and abilities

Gaining knowledge in areas outside my industry/specialization

Creative thinking and innovation

But the number one reason? It’s self-mastery.

Interestingly, and rightfully I believe, the respondents did not make clear, direct ties between their learning and securing a promotion. It wasn’t, “If I learn this I can get promoted.” Rather, the priority was self-mastery, increasing self-awareness of what one should know to improve leadership and functional skills. Only 14 percent considered education for the purposes of obtaining a promotion their highest motivator.

It’s this natural curiosity… the drive to be better… the desire to grow and seek out new possibilities that has fueled us to get to where we are, and it’s going to help us get to where we’re going.

William Flamme

William Flamme is ExecuNet's Marketing Content Manager, where he is responsible for developing engaging career, job search, and leadership insight and delivering executive-level content across the various properties under the ExecuNet brand. Prior to joining ExecuNet in 2008, Will earned a master's degree in education and taught fifth grade and sixth grade. As a teacher, he deepened his appreciation for the written word and mastered skills necessary for managing writers who sometimes view deadlines as homework.